


If Walls Could Talk

by evanie



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Blood and Injury, Character Death, Heavy Angst, Implied/Referenced Cheating, M/M, Michael Clifford & Luke Hemmings Hate Each Other, Michael and Luke are rivals on the same hero team, Minor Violence, Past Character Death, Post-Don't Stop AU, Slow Burn, Superheroes, Swearing, don't worry they wont keep their old hero names, this AU is basically what happened after the Don't Stop AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-01
Updated: 2018-10-09
Packaged: 2019-05-16 20:08:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 21,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14818046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evanie/pseuds/evanie
Summary: “Don’t even fucking say anything about me, Wave. You have no fucking idea why I left the team, and you have no clue how much I lost after it,” Luke says surging forward, eyes glowing bright white and causing the electricity in the room to crackle with his true emotions coming out.or the Don't Stop AU where everything fell apart.(previously posted as Youngblood)





	1. I.

**Author's Note:**

> huge thanks to teddy for beta'ing this work!
> 
> this has been something i've been writing the past few months! i truly hope anyone who reads sticks around to see what'll happen. please leave any feedback in the comments, it's very much appreciated (:
> 
> here's my [tumblr](https://vanswarpedtour2008.tumblr.com)

It had been four years since the team split up. 

Luke had gone back to HQ twice after the split. Once was to get his equipment, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of software and hardware used to scour the city for crime and to find out where the powers each of them had, came from. The second time was to say goodbye to Smash before any of the others came back. He’d never been close to Smash, but it would be so much harder to try to talk to Mike-ro-wave or CalPal after what happened. His breath got shaky at the thought for the first time in nearly half a decade.

This time was more threatening. There was a dark feeling that swirled in his head and made him feel sick. He felt dread coursing through his blood as he approached the secret entrance. A small nook in the wall between two abandoned buildings was well hidden as no one really ventured to this side of town. But, this time there wasn't really anything sitting behind that door to be anticipating. As well as being abandoned outside, it was going to be abandoned inside too. He let out a hitched breath and pressed his hand to the print scanner he built himself when he was fifteen. 

"Password," a warped recording of the inner speaker asked, sounding less like a voice than the remnants of one. The sounds are familiar, but years of disrepair and lack of maintenance leaves it distant and ultimately inaudible. It was in shambles, but Luke didn't know if he wanted it to be repaired.

"Chocolate Chip Pancakes," he says softly, and physically shaking. He doesn't know what he was doing at age fifteen making the password to their secret hideout 'Chocolate Chip Pancakes' but hundreds of repetitions are enough to have permanently drilled it into his mind. There’s much anticipation but deep down, he’s afraid.

"Welcome, Dr. Fluke," the robotic voice says again in it's old and warbling voice. He’s outwardly cringing at this point, deeply regretting his former hero name. The door heaves up slowly, revealing two fire poles, a deep drop, and a tube elevator. The deep drop was Luke’s entrance into the sanctum. At the time it had been a way to train his telekinesis through himself. He recalls several instances of jumping down but catching himself too far up only to plummet eight more feet onto the concrete. Although now, he can withstand large falls without hurting himself, after training his mind to catch his body within millimeters of the ground. 

He jumps down the shaft and lands at the bottom with a soft smack. He’s on his feet and his eyes adjust to the dimly lit room. He lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding and his heart stutters in his chest. It’s just as they left it. Annexed to the first room are three smaller rooms, a kitchen, Mike-ro-wave’s man cave, and the training room. 

The island in the center of the room has a thick layer of dust on it, but under it he can see a newspaper.

‘Group Of Supers Call It Quits’

He doesn’t know who left it, but it feels like a stab to the heart. The pain of leaving it all behind to pursue a normal life grew dull over the years. Those years were spent trying to heal from the hurt of what happened, but seeing the paper brings it all rushing back. Luke uses the edge of the counter to hold himself up as he feels incredibly light headed from it all. It’s his fault the team split up and he knows it well. 

He turns around and leans on the counter for a while, thinking of what he can do to change things. Maybe make things better between the others after all this time. He sighs and walks further into the room and freezes when something clicks and suddenly he’s thrown into brightness. He vaguely remembers rigging up an automated light system, but he hadn’t anticipated what else had been rigged to the lighting. 

All their old suits were hanging in glass cases in the back of the sanctum. It knocks the air out of him because it’s almost like the first day all over again with nothing in the sanctum but the suits in their cases. He waits a few moments before approaching and typing in the pin to his case, his old dog Molly's birthday. The airtight lock opens and he can’t keep himself from running his hands over the material of the suit. By today’s standards, it’s ragged and not at all suitable for a hero, but the memories of all the things he did in it flood back in a wave of bittersweet nostalgia.

He didn’t know what he could do to make things better in the group but a place to start was maybe with cleaning up the secret sanctum. He toyed with the hair tie around his wrist before reaching up to tie his growing hair into a small bun on the crown of his skull. He doubted there would be any cleaning supplies in the sanctum and turned around to the entrance to the elevator. 

It was bound to be a long day.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

Cleaning up the lair wasn’t as hard as he thought it would be after calculating how long it would take to do each room and setting up a playlist with the perfect amount of songs to help him finish. Each surface is immaculate and the once dusty air is finally circulating again. The interior is a little dull and outdated, but a few more days worth of work would easily make it better than it had been before. He knows he could take years to make it the perfect hideout, but 3 days worth of work could make it so much better than it had been before he even showed up

He spends a few hours swiping through different websites and ordering thousands of dollars worth of new interior decorations and building supplies to improve the basic stainless steel walls. He yawns softly and looks at his phone to see that it’s 10 pm, and finally takes notice of the dull ache in his stomach.

He’s starving.

He sighs and yawns again, walking to the island and grabbing the voice boxes he grabbed from the ancient wiring systems. He thinks he can tweak them a bit using his newer computers and replace the voice with something newer. It’s a 5-minute fix, he thinks, getting in the elevator and leaving the building, carrying a paper bag with all of them inside of it. He gets his car keys out of his pocket and makes his way to his car that’s parked a solid block away from the sanctum for extreme caution. His car is fancy for someone his age because after the group split, he honed in particularly on his computer skills. Hacking was easy for him and companies paid him a hefty handful for finding holes in their security.

He gets in the car and yawns again, not trusting himself to drive in such a sleepy state, but needing to get home. On the way to his apartment, he picks up a black coffee and a large fry from Macca’s, taking sips and bites at all of the stoplights and occasionally yawing as his tiredness fades a bit with the coffee. 

He gets home and it’s 11:59 according to his phone and he sighs, getting his keys out to open the door and he hears scraping on the other side accompanied by a familiar huff. The door opens and Petunia is right there to greet Luke and he can’t hold back a smile.

“Hey girl, you miss me?” He asks, setting the bag next to the door and dropping to his knees to pet the dog. Luke considers her to be his favorite person, as she’s the only living thing in his life anymore. He doesn’t consider it to be sad as she’s been there for him for the past three years. He got her when he thought he was at his lowest after the group’s split. His smile fades when he yawns again. He drains the coffee from the cup and calls Petunia to follow him into the living room where he falls back into his couch. It’s not terribly comfortable but in his state of exhaustion, it’s good enough. 

Petunia curls up to Luke as he takes his hair out of the top knot and shakes it out around his face. His hair is bound to be messy, but the unkempt halo of golden curls is better than falling asleep with an uncomfortable top knot. He runs his hand over her one more time before letting out a breath and leaning back on the couch, not bothering to take his shoes off.

He’s asleep before he even knows.


	2. II.

Waking up the next morning takes a while. Luke pets Petunia as she snores from on top of his chest, because as much as he loves her, he’s annoyed to be up so soon. Even after being alive for twenty-one years, he still hasn’t gotten used to having to wake up early every morning. Light is flooding through the full sized glass panes in his living room, and while the heat of the sun feels nice, he’s being slowly blinded as the beams creep closer into his line of sight. He breathes out a long and heavy sigh before placing Petunia on the ground and getting up to start the day.

The first thing he does in the morning is change Petunia’s water to remove any contaminants from the day before. More times than not he’ll rinse out the bowl thoroughly and open the back door while rinsing it out so she can go outside and do dog things. When he’s done with the water, he’ll start brewing his coffee and takes a few minutes to scroll through Instagram and check out what the people he knows are up to. There aren’t many, even though he’d never admit it, but simulating an interesting life is better than not attempting at all. When Petunia comes back in, he shuts the back door and gets ready for a shower. Taking showers aren’t really that interesting, and he spends the time thinking about what he needs to get done during the day. After showers come the mandatory coffee breaks and breakfast.

Today doesn’t exactly follow his usual plan. After he gets out of the shower he’s interrupted by the doorbell ringing and Petunia igniting with barks and soft growls. He sighs and wraps his towel around his hips and goes down to open the door for whoever’s on the other side. The doorbell sounds again and Luke has to scold Petunia for barking so loud in the morning.

“Sorry about that,” Luke says opening the door to a delivery man. The man just smiles and tells Luke it’s no big deal while he signs for each of the packages.

The man has two other workers with him who unload all of the large boxes out of the truck and into Luke’s garage for safe keeping. Each box has a sheet of paper attached to it that lists its contents, and Luke is relieved when he sees that everything he ordered for the sanctum is there. The delivery people pile back into their truck and drive away as Luke shuts his garage. 

Luke goes back inside and quickly gets dressed, opting for dark fitted slacks, a loose button down shirt and his nicest pair of black boots. While he’s getting ready, the reporter on the T.V says something about an Australian model moving back into the area. It doesn’t mean anything to him, so he turns off the T.V before she can say anymore about Michael Clifford and his long-time modelling career. He heads out towards the garage, grabbing his keys and jacket on the way out, but not before stopping to pet Petunia. She lets out a satisfied sound and Luke smiles before turning on his heel and heading out the garage door.

When he’s in the garage, he takes a few minutes to load everything into his Jeep. Initially, he had wanted to go for a G-Wagon, but he needed something less conspicuous compared to the Lamborghini he’d had prior to his 1969 Chevy z28. While Luke wasn’t a car buff, he enjoyed having nicer things in his life. For a long time he thought material objects could replace the people in his life who were gone. He tries pushing the thoughts away but gives up when they grow persistent and instead focuses on getting the rest of the boxes into the back of the Jeep.

Once the Jeep is full of all of the boxes, Luke gets in. Instead of immediately starting the car and getting the day started, he sits in thought and thinks of what he could possibly do to make it up to the team. Four lost years, he thinks to himself, ready to bash his head against the steering wheel with guilt. He composes himself enough to sigh and turn the radio on. The song playing is something he’s sure he’s heard a hundred times or more, but he doesn’t have the will to change it. He uses the door opener installed in his rearview mirror to open the garage and pulls out before zooming down the street.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

Getting back to the other side of town takes an hour and a half. Luke thinks he should’ve left earlier and beat the traffic, but doesn’t really care when he gets to the warehouse district. Getting the boxes into the the sanctum is a chore and it takes him six trips before all of them are finally in the lowest part of the hideout. Unpacking the boxes is easy as there are trash bags readily available to get rid of all the garbage that’ll be left behind.

Everything is set up and he is elated at the thought that he accomplished it by himself he did it all by himself. He takes a few minutes to rest in the center of the floor of the former Mike-ro-wave Cave and breathes deeply. He has to make a decision on whether he’s going to go through with his plan or not. On one hand if it goes right, he’s reunited with the team and they have the potential to fix everything and go back to how it was before. On the other had it could go horribly wrong and Calpal and Mike-ro-wave could refuse to show up after what happened.

His breathing is shallow and there’s a lump in his throat he has to swallow back. There’s a lot of intense emotion going into his decision making because he can’t afford to make any mistakes. Not after what he did the first time. He sighs softly and stands up, teetering a bit as the blood rushes to his head. He bites at his nails in anticipation because he can’t make up his mind. He’s never been good at decision making. Infinite knowledge of humankind and the universe more time than not came in handy in situations that could be fixed with intelligence, but making decisions makes Luke feel like he’s 13 again. 

He grabs his phone and walks to the elevator, getting in and going up to leave the building. Walking was always something he turned to in times of indecision. The key to infinite knowledge was a short process, but its effects continued to plague Luke years later. Sometimes at night he can’t sleep because of his wandering mind, reminding him of all the terrible things in the world that happen to innocent or undeserving people. Luke had to learn how to be unempathetic most of the time or risk crumbling under the pressure on his shoulders as someone who knows everything that was, is, and will be.

Luke hears a bustling city in the distance and goes stiff at the noise. He can’t do it anymore, and especially not alone. There’s nothing significant about the sounds coming from the city, but it doesn’t feel right to Luke. He can’t bring himself to do it. He turns on his heel and walks back to the warehouse district as fast as he can, picking up his speed and eventually running as he gets closer.

He uses the recently fixed handprint scanner and enters the sanctum, jumping down the shaft and curling into a somersault at the bottom. He hasn’t done it in years, but he sticks it perfectly and a sense of pride and identity washes over him. He didn’t realise how much he missed it. 

He walks to the glass cases and opens his back up again, taking the silver mask out and tying it around his eyes to conceal his identity. He turns and sees what he’s looking for on the computing consol. It was wired to work regardless of the presence of computers. He takes small steps over to it and breathes heavily. It’s now or never he thinks, hoping the others kept their devices on them after all these years. His hand hovers over the button before retracting. He’s terrified of what might happen, but he’s hoping he can make things right because that’s what it’s about. It’s about fixing his mistake, he thinks confidently.

He hits the button and his talkie buzzes in his pocket and begins to beep rapidly. 

An emergency meeting call is delivered to the team for the first time in 4 years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ooooh cliffhanger ( :
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	3. III.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> update: all sections in italics indicate flashbacks !

Luke has to lean against the counter after he realises what he’s done. His hands are shaking as he rubs them on his slacks, trying to rid them of sweat. He lets out a shaky breath, and runs his fingers through his hair. He’s always had very easily spotted nervous tics and this time is no different. He taps his foot on the floor and brings a hand up to rub at his face, anticipating the rest of the team’s arrival. A few minutes pass by and his hope is dwindling because of the amount of time it’s taking for anything to happen. He’s on the verge of letting his mind loose when he hears something at the entrance. A muffled voice on the other side of the door is audible, but only barely. 

Something sweeps over Luke and he can feel his knees shaking and the skin on his back heating up. The lump in his throat grows heavy and the room feels like it’s getting darker. He can’t breathe. It feels like oil is filling up his lungs and he doesn’t realise what’s going on until it’s too late.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

_He’s in the secret sanctum. He’d never dreamed of having one, even when his powers first manifested. It was more of a distant dream compared to a reality he’d get to live. His palms are sweaty and he’s waiting for the others to show up. The other recruits who managed to prove they were real. All of their identities needed to be kept a secret or they’d risk getting in trouble with law enforcement if anything went wrong. They weren’t the bad guys, but people always looked for a scapegoat in tight situations._

_There’s a noise and suddenly there’s someone else in the sanctum._

_He’s wearing a gray t-shirt and sweatpants which deeply contrast from the neon yellow mask on his face. Luke blushes and looks down, avoiding all eye contact with the other for fear of further embarrassment._

_Luke is wearing a long sleeve t-shirt that belongs to one of his older brothers, and he hasn’t quite grown into it. Sweater paws are formed by two extra inches of fabric that extend past his fingers and he feels tiny compared to the other. He’s never been confident in his abilities or his personality. Shyness was what he was known for at school._

_“Hi,” the other says, offering a sideways smile to Luke. Luke has to admit that he’s smitten. He’s never met anyone who came off as charming as he did in the first few moments they’d known each other for._

_“Hi,” Luke returns, tossing his fringe back in a nervous tic. The other boy’s smile grows and he lets out a soft chuckle. Luke knows he should strike up conversation out of politeness, but being in his awkward teen years, he can’t bring himself to._

_“I’m CalPal,” the other guy says moving to the otherside of Luke and offering his hand to shake. Luke tosses his fringe back again and takes a second to think about what he’s going to say._

_“I’m Dr. Fluke,” he says stepping forward and immediately falling to the ground. It isn’t his finest moment, but he manages to catch himself mid-air. CalPal’s eyes widen and he lets out a noise of awe. The moment doesn’t last long as Luke’s mental strength wavers and he soon has mouthful of dust. CalPal lets out a restrained giggle and helps Luke get up._

_Luke wants to to either thank him or scold him for what just happened, but is cut off by a boy with neon pink hair walking into the sanctum. Luke didn’t hear him enter, but he skitters away from CalPal to the island where he leans back to regain his composure._

_Both CalPal and pink haired guy have at least 5 inches on Luke, making him the smallest so far. He supposes they could be older, but it’s annoying to say the least. He knows he still has five years left to grow, but it’s embarrassing because he always feels like the odd one out in groups of his classmates and friends._

_The pink haired guy introduces himself to Luke and CalPal as Mike-ro-wave (taking the time to spell it out letter for letter just so the others know it’s supposed to be a pun). Luke admits he isn’t a huge fan of the boy due to his over enthusiastic approach to the whole ‘hero’ thing. He rambles on about comic book heroes for a solid twenty minutes, holding CalPal’s full attention, but causing Luke to lose interest early on._

_The last of the group takes another half an hour to finally show up._

_He’s boisterous and loud compared to the rest of them and his aura is composed of positive energy. He takes a second to introduce himself as Smash to the rest of the group, although Luke isn’t sure why he chose the name. He’s confident that he could find out in mere seconds as to why it it’s Smash, but privacy is something he tries to respect as much as possible. Luke admits to himself that being around him gives him an instant mood boost._

_The others chatter away about little things, trying not to give too much away about themselves outside of their hero forms. Luke stays quiet for the most part, but is attentive and picks up everything they say and remembers it. Along with remembering their words, he memorises their little vocal quirks and tendencies. Perhaps it will come in handy in the future._

_“What about you, Dr. Fluke?” CalPal asks, turning his head to face Luke. The others follow suit and nod as a way to edge him on to talk about his powers. It’s pretty embarrassing to be put on the spot he thinks, flipping his fringe back again._

_“What about me?” Luke asks a little quickly, fidgeting with his sweater. Truthfully, he spaced out and doesn’t want to use his subconscious to recall such a small detail. It’s dangerous to try and recall if he isn’t in a clear headspace as one thought could lead to another and force him to think about every other possibility of the moment._

_“Your powers?” Mike-ro-wave asks, looking between CalPal and Luke expectantly. It’s condescending, Luke silently thinks with a frown, instantly disliking Mike-ro-wave even more than before._

_Despite feeling like an insolent child, he sighs and thinks about a way to phrase it without sounding condescending himself. Everyone looks at him like he holds the secret to the universe (he does, but it’s only an expression), and he feels like disappearing on the spot. He’s always been self-conscious about trying to explain his ability to others. Really the only other person who knows about his powers is his older brother who shares the power to a slightly less effective degree. Jack and Luke can talk in depth about many different things that haven’t happened yet, but Luke often gets ahead of himself and brings up events further into the future than Jack can._

_“I know everything,” Luke says looking down, suddenly interested in the worn rubber toe of his ratty old converse. Mike-ro-wave scoffs in the background of his mind’s noise. His speech sounds garbled, almost like Luke is listening to him talk through a bathtub with running water. It gets louder every couple of seconds and Luke has to focus on the empty wall behind his head to even attempt to stay present._

_CalPal is listening intently to what Mike-ro-wave is saying and nodding at each of the points he’s making against Luke. Luke doesn’t see that Smash’s eyes are locked on his blank face and slowly taking in the beginnings of what he doesn’t know as a ‘World Induced Blackout’ as he would later call them._

_Luke can’t think straight as the hundreds of voices start whispering together and telling him more of what has happened, and what will happen as he sits here doing nothing. They all fade into a loud buzzing in the crown of Luke’s skull and it sends a shooting pain into the back of Luke’s eyes but he can’t stop thinking. It’s too late when he realises._

_“Guys-,” Smash says trying to get their attention during Mike-ro-wave’s seemingly unending rant about how arrogant it is for Luke to say he knows everything. He repeats himself but it’s too late by the time they start listening to him._

_Luke’s eyes are glowing a blue-white color and he lets out a strangled breath. He floats up towards the ceiling before collapsing on the floor in a pile of limbs. He’s convulsing sporadically and mumbling under his breath in different voices. It’s not demonic, but it’s disturbing seeing someone so young going through something so horrifying._

_“Jesus,” CalPal says taking a step away from Luke’s body on the floor. He stops shaking, but Smash doesn’t let them get any closer to him._

_The room’s temperature suddenly takes a nose dive and they can all see their breathing. Luke’s body is enveloped with a soft white glow that gets harsher by the second. They all manage to look away before the whole room turns white and temporarily blinds them._

_Luke wakes up._

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

“Fluke,” Luke hears, starting to regain consciousness. There are hands on his shoulders and what he thinks is a leg under his head. He can’t open his eyes but he moves a hand and feels the cold concrete floor under his hand.

“Do you think he’s okay?” a concerned voice says. There’s no response, so Luke can only guess there’s someone other than him and the person holding him. He has to concentrate pretty hard to form coherent thoughts that cancel out the pain that’s engulfing his brain in an intense feeling he can only describe as the color red.

‘I’m okay,’ he thinks outwardly, knowing they both received the message when one of them makes an interesting sound in the back of their throat. He takes another five minutes to regain composure before he can open his eyes.

He comes face to face with a pair of hazel eyes looking into his own blue ones. The relief expressed in them makes him less tense and he breathes out a puff of air he didn’t know he was holding in. He’s wearing a mask that covers the lower half of his face and a pair of tortoise shell glasses that Luke finds pretty endearing.

“Hey,” he says with a shaky voice. He looks at the other person and recognises him as Mike-ro-wave, no longer sporting colored hair and wearing a big pair of sunglasses that cover half of his face. His arms are folded over his chest, but he doesn’t look angry. If anything he looks… tired.

“It was like the first day all over again,” Wave says, chuckling a little light-heartedly at what just took place. Luke is embarrassed, but he laughs with the others in attempt to lighten the mood and everything feels okay for a few seconds. It's almost like the old days when they were all still kids trying to figure out how to save the world.

“Does anyone know if CP is coming?” Luke asks, suddenly changing the tone of the room from happy to hesitant in less than a few seconds. Wave’s laughter dies off and he looks at the ground, and Luke knows that look a little too well. Smash looks sorry and shakes his head as if to say that he doesn't actually know. Luke's shoulders slump down the slightest bit and he has to restrain himself from letting out a disappointed sigh. 

Luke has to use his hands to push off of the ground to get up, and he's suddenly very glad he changed into a t-shirt earlier. Smash stands up right after him and they're all kind of looking at each other up and down.

“Damn Fluke, you grew like a skyscraper,” Smash says with the hint of a playful smile. Luke blushes unnoticeably, and tucks a loose curl behind his ear. Wave is still looking him up and down and Luke slightly regrets his outfit choice. He considers there to be no malice in Wave’s gaze, but the inklings of self consciousness from his teen years continues to linger into his twenties. 

“Impressive footwear. I didn't single you out as a YSL kind of guy,” Wave says, sounding mildly impressed. His voice is very different from four years prior, sounding more American than Australian to Luke's ear. Luke is also impressed that he managed to know the kind of boots he was wearing off the top of his head. Another one of Luke’s impulse buys were a few pairs of the shoes, worth thousands of dollars in total.

“What have you been up to in the past few years, Fluke?” Smash asks, folding his arms and leaning back onto the control console. Smash managed to grow up the most out of the three of them, looking like a professional compared to the others. Luke clears his throat a bit before he starts to talk.

“I finished up high school and graduated, and went on to university for a degree in cybersecurity. I graduated last year after finishing my degree in two years.” He says, trying to sound nonchalant, but he knows that it is a big deal compared to most people his age. They’re aware that Luke had all of the knowledge it took to complete the classes easily, but the work ethic he had was what impressed them the most.

“Did you find yourself a special someone?” Smash jokes, unknowingly striking a nerve deep inside of Luke.

“Yeah, I dated someone for a while,” He sighs, rubbing his eyes thinking back to his last year of university where he met a girl who made him feel almost the same way CalPal had. He chuckles humorlessly and shakes his head distastefully.

“We nearly dated for two years… had a dog together, y’know? And then I came home from a work trip in New York and found my house trashed, my dog starving and her in bed with someone else,” He says remembering the whole scenario vividly. He looks down and sighs again, “She said she’d been meaning to break it off for months, but didn’t have the heart to, so she started seeing someone behind my back.”

Wave looks saddened by the news, and Smash equally so. 

“How’s life been for you?” Luke asks, looking at Smash. His eyes light up at the question and he launches into his story of the past few years. He says that immediately after the split, he took a few months off to backpack around New Zealand to find balance inside of himself again. He then goes on to talk about how he ended up taking his interest in cooking and going to school for it. Luke’s proud when he mentions that he’s currently working in one of the nicest restaurants in the country as a result of his hard work.

They move on to Wave, who looks embarrassed and says his line of work is too hard to explain without giving himself away. They both understand and don’t press for details, but are both very intrigued by what needs to be kept so secretive among them. 

They’re quietly chattering about the smaller details of their lives like their pets, cars and of course, what they’ll do if the team gets back together when they all hear someone open the door upstairs. They all immediately stop and listen as someone slides down one of the fire poles and hits the ground with a sharp _thwack_. Luke’s breath catches in the back of his throat when _he_ emerges from the shadows.

“Sorry I’m late, guys,” CalPal says with an apologetic smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> very excited to get this chapter up! please know that comments and kudos motivate me to get more chapters done in a quicker amount of time!
> 
>  
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	4. IV.

Luke’s heart is beating intensely when CalPal comes in. Of course while everything's different due to the amount of time that’s passed, there’s that overwhelming familiar feeling in the pit of Luke’s stomach. It’s like being fourteen all over again, sweaty palms, breathless conversations and awkward laughs to fill spaces of silence. He wants to push himself to engage in conversation, but he sulks back and leans against the console while the others converse, looking so happy and not really noticing that Luke has drawn himself back. Luke fiddles with the rings on his fingers, spinning them around his knuckles in anticipation, and as an outward manifestation of his anxiety. He pushes himself up to sit on the counter but he lets his mind wander, eyes glowing white as the others talk amongst themselves. These days he knows his limits and doesn’t have to worry about accidentally going nuclear on the rest of the team. 

“Fluke,” He clearly hears, and his mind is immediately drawn back to the room. He winces at the sharp pain that engulfs his frontal lobe and he leans back on the counter. He covers his eyes to make the pain less prevalent, but the migraine seems like it will be strong for more time than he’d care for. He thinks they must’ve forgotten how sensitive he was to noise and touch while in the headspace. Whoever just talked mumbles a quiet apology as Luke tries to gather his thoughts and push the pain out of his mind.

“You alright, Fluke?” someone says and he nods, clenching and unclenching his jaw to ease the pressure in his temples as he nods. He doesn’t think the sensitivity has been this bad since the group was together, but in a way it makes sense. Strong minds all in one place have always made him dizzy and his brain needs time to readjust to being in the same room with all of them again. 

“Fluke,” he hears someone else breathe out, and his eyes are fluttering open and glancing over at whoever just spoke. He knows the voice but doesn’t respond immediately because of how much it hurts, even after so many years. He lets out a soft breath and sits up, jumping off of the counter and taking a deep breath. He stretches exposing a soft patch of skin under his button down that he doesn’t think anyone sees, and he cracks his back. He notices quietly that he’s grown much taller than the rest of them and it’s a bit of a shock because he was the shortest of them before the split.

“This is insane… I can’t believe we’re all back here,” CalPal says, looking at everyone up and down. It truly is wild that they’re all reunited for the first time in years, and Luke would’ve never imagined doing it even just a year ago. He shifts his weight between his feet and tucks a loose curl behind his ear.

“I know, right? I didn’t think Fluke would have ever y’know, come back,” Wave says, picking at a cuticle and smiling a bit and glancing at Luke. Luke looks at his boots and shifts around a bit as everyone else agrees with what Wave just said. It’s a bit imperious (a lot, he thinks silently) but all he can do is flash an irritated look at Wave. The others don’t know, but Luke had plenty enough reason to not want to come back because of everything that happened after the team fell apart. He clenches his jaw in annoyance and sends out a wave of irritation to the others, looking at the ground as they all step back from Luke.

“Someone’s grumpy,” Smash tries to say as a feeble attempt to lighten the mood. Wave only shoots the look back at Luke, and CalPal is scratching at his neck and shaking his head softly. Luke remembers why he always felt like an outsider among them towards the end of it all. The white noise in his mind whispered that he wasn’t important to their success and that he only held his team back. His grip tightens on the counter and he huffs, only getting more irritated with each empty second.

“Fuck off,” he says quietly, turning around and shrugging his jacket off as the air grows toxic and hot. He half expects Wave to snap at him for getting angry at all of them, but the room remains dead silent. He throws his jacket on the center console and turns back to face all of them. Smash is looking at the wall just past Luke, attempting to avoid all outward emotion being expressed by the other three. CalPal looks upset and keeps looking from Luke to Wave, trying to mentally sort out what’s going to happen between them. Wave’s eyes are boring into Luke, and under any other circumstance he’d be intimidated, but in reality Luke has the upperhand on Wave no matter what happens. Wave opens his mouth to say something but Luke knows exactly what he’s thinking of saying, and immediately cuts him off before he can get more than a word out. 

“Don’t even fucking say anything about me, Wave. You have no fucking idea why I left the team, and you have no clue how much I lost after it,” Luke says surging forward, eyes glowing bright white and causing the electricity in the room to crackle with his true emotions coming out. His breathing is heavy and it feels like he’s being dragged back by something but his vision is drowning out and he thinks he’s unintentionally connecting with Wave. He starts to panic but it only causes his memories to surge to the foreground of his mind before everything comes back and the two of them collapse.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

_The year was 2014 and everything was supposed to be great. The cool winter air was a stark contrast from the usually sunny and hot weather. Luke remembers being ecstatic about finishing school and either going to university, or solely focusing on his hero career. The job didn’t pay money, but it was rewarding to know that he made an impact on other people’s lives. That day was what changed his life plan completely though, derailing all the plans he had made._

_“Luke! Breakfast!” he heard his mum yell from downstairs. His mind was constantly active, so waking up was the easiest part of the morning. The harder part for him was trying to drown out the constant hum of voices that droned on infinitely in his mind. He breathed out softly, getting out of bed and stretching, repeating mantras in his mind to cancel out the voices and luckily for him, it mostly worked. He pulled on a pair of pajama pants over his boxers and grabbed a dirty black shirt off of his bed before pulling it over his head. Luke was sure he heard multiple glasses and plates clinking from below, although it could've easily been from the depths of his mind. He shook the intrusive thoughts away before making it to the bottom of the stairs and grinned brightly when he saw his older brother, Jack, sitting at the table with his mom._

_“Dude! When did you get back?” Luke asked, hugging his brother when he stands up._

_“Got in yesterday at midnight after a long ass day of travel,” Jack said with a chuckle. Their mum shook her head disapprovingly at Jack's crude language, but the boys only laughed light-heartedly at the whole situation. Luke sat down at the island next to Jack and ate as his elder brother talked about his time in University and how he was excelling in all of his courses. Their mum looked so proud as he went on about his classes on the mechanics of English and his revelations in Biochemistry. Luke felt like Jack was the only other person he could fully relate to when it came to conversation about their education and of course, their understanding of the universe._

_Jack had been gifted as a kid and manifested a high level of intelligence from a young age that Luke had always envied. While Luke had also shown above average intelligence, it didn't come anywhere close to what Jack exhibited. Of course Luke was proud of his older brother, but he also wanted to see if anything could further his knowledge without spending years and thousands of dollars in school. So in his spare time, he researched the chemical properties of the human brain and found out what the brain did to retain memories and how the brain reacted to new memories being lived. These smaller discoveries allowed him to create a chemical compound that he believed would be able to expand his knowledge intake during school and would allow him to maybe become equal with Jack in terms of intelligence. What ended up happening was he added a drop more than what he needed in one of the measurements, and rather than increase his knowledge intake, it expanded his understanding of everything. More than anything he was glad in the long run that he chose the medium of hair gel rather than means of consumption as the results of the experiment could’ve been even more devastating._

_“Well, I'm glad you're home,” Luke said with a small smile before scooping some eggs and sausage into his mouth. His mum made small talk with Jack before cleaning up the dishes from breakfast. Luke didn’t really pay attention, instead honing in on the local news station reporting something about a large building related accident in the greater Sydney area._

_“Mum, can you turn the T.V on?” he asked, worry seeping into his voice as his attention panned between Jack and his mum. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but she complied, reaching for the remote and turning it on. There was a news anchor reporting a building collapse in the center of the city, and Luke’s stomach dropped. He excused himself, running up the stairs and immediately locking himself in his room in an attempt to get out of the house. He heard his door click and Jack was there in the door frame, looking worried._

_“Luke, think about what you’re doing,” Jack said with a pleading tone. Luke recognises that Jack was trying to hold him back from danger, but he thought, the situation wasn’t about him. He took a deep breath and screwed his eyes shut before shaking his head._

_“I have to do what I think is best, and… Keeping people safe is what I need to do,” he says turning and climbing on his window sill. He pulls the window open and looks over the edge. It’s easily a 20 foot drop into the garden, but it was definitely not the most dangerous thing he’d ever done._

_“Luke, I know trying to keep you back is pointless, but fuck… Please be careful,” he said running his hands through his long hair. Luke’s heart was in his throat, because he knew Jack only wanted for him to be safe in such a dangerous time, but he needed to make sure everyone else was safe before he was. Luke swallowed harshly and nodded, making a silent promise to Jack to be as safe as possible. He looked between Jack and the window a few more times, jumping out of it at the last second before Jack could speak again._

_He sprinted down the street, immediately heading towards the center of the city. While his stamina was greater than most others, he knew if he kept it up for too long he’d tire out at an alarming rate. He cursed internally for not taking the car or- His internal monologue was stopped by the sound of a car honking behind him. He slowed down and looked to see Jack in the driver seat of his beaten up Honda._

_“Get in, nerd,” he called once was close enough to Luke. Luke was incredibly annoyed that Jack was going to be so close to the danger, but decided not to vocalize it once he was in the car. They drove in silence towards the center of the city, and Luke got into his costume to the best of his ability. It had become second nature to grab his backpack for any event, in case he needed to make a quick change into his alter-ego, Dr. Fluke. He tied his mask over his eyes and glanced at a jittery Jack in the driver’s seat. By this time the two of them were at the edge of the city, which was currently covered in a thin layer of dust._

_“Drive as far from here as possible Jack, and don’t even try to follow me,” Luke said turning to his older brother with a dead serious tone to his usually bubbly voice. Jack nodded looking somewhat defeated, and that seemed to satisfy Luke. He unbuckled his seat belt and opened the door, closing it behind him before he sprinted into the chaos. There were screams that echoed across the building as well as car alarms blaring. The usual crisp morning air was riddled with loose papers and settling dust. Sirens from local authorities drew closer, but Luke knew deep down they wouldn’t be there soon enough. He kept running, his lungs aching from pushing himself, before finally making it to the point of devastation. The top of a building had toppled into another, and his heart stopped. He looked up and saw people inside the toppled building looking terrified and pressed up against the glass of the windows. He didn’t hesitate before running into the building and racing up flights of stairs until he was in the area of the split. The floor was mostly intact as Luke climbed into the toppled area as carefully as he could. He was able to usher several people back down into the safer part of the building.  
“Please… Please help,” a voice called from further into the toppled section. Luke crawled back in, stepping around dangerous and unstable areas to reach the back of the building. His heart rate sped up everytime his footing slipped and threatened to send him crashing into the glass. He didn’t know how strong it was after the fall, so every step was a risk he didn’t want to take. He managed to make it to the back where a woman was alone, sitting on the glass and calling out for help. All the blood in his face drained when he saw three large shards of glass poking out of the woman’s knee. She was sobbing in pain, but physically couldn’t move from her spot even with the glass cracking underneath her. He heard snapping sounds from the area behind him, but focused his full attention on the woman who needed help. He didn’t even think before jumping over and scooping her into his arms and sprinting back to the stairs. She held on tightly to Luke’s neck as the building began to creak again. He heard glass falling behind him but didn’t dare look back as the rest of the supports gave out. His hearing strained immensely as everything fell to the ground. He swore and could only hope the others he evacuated made it safely away from the area. He continued carrying the woman and was grateful there was a rear exit to the building. He knows he passed it a few times on the way to school in the past, and loosely recalled it being a modeling agency._

_He carried the woman to an area where paramedics had set up a station for all the others to be treated for wounds and other types of trauma. Firefighters had gone in and evacuated more people from the bottom floors. Luke looked around for awhile, but didn’t see the team anywhere. He let out a deep breath before his thoughts were cut off._

_“What the fuck, Fluke,” he heard, as his body was tossed backwards. His eyes snapped open to reveal an angry looking Mike-ro-wave, and two other equally displeased members of the team. He furrowed his brows in confusion before Mike-ro-wave opened his mouth again._

_“You didn’t even fucking think before going in there and you’re supposed to be the brain of the group,” he practically growled, closing in on Luke and jabbing a finger into his chest._

_“She needed help as soon as possible, I was just doing what I thought was right,” he said with a pleading tone saturating his usually calm and collected voice. Mike-ro-wave’s eyes narrowed into thin slits._

_“Whatever you pulled up there, cost us three lives on the ground.”_

_Luke backed away, shaking his head in disbelief. His breathing was uneven and he felt like he was two seconds away from collapsing._

_“I need names,” he said, launching towards the police cars parked near the rubble. He ran through an alley littered with bricks and papers from the building before coming up on three ambulances being loaded with body bags. There was an officer filling out paperwork on the scene, looking solemn as well as annoyed with a pen that clearly wasn’t working in his favor._

_“Excuse me, I need names of those who passed away in the accident today,” Luke said, out of breath and heart pounding at a million miles an hour. He bit at the soft flesh inside his mouth in anticipation as the officer ruffled through a few other papers. It felt like he waited an eternity before the officer began to list names for him._

_“Uhm, according to driver’s licenses found on the deceased individual’s bodies we’re looking at a forty-six year old, Oliver Bowers,” the officer says glancing over the papers, reading the names one by one, “Thirty-four year old, Christie Freeman and… twenty year old, Jack Hemmings.”_

_Luke felt like he forgot how to breathe when the officer said Jack’s name. He also felt like someone reached inside his chest and twisted his heart out. He wanted to collapse right where he was and break down sobbing, but he couldn’t be public about it without facing consequences. He finally understood why so many people described losing someone as painful, because now he knew how much it felt like being set on fire from the inside. It hurt so bad knowing he’d never be able to see Jack alive again. He bit his lip harshly, inflicting only a small amount of pain on himself in brief comparison to the immense agony felt due to losing Jack._

_His hands shook as he walked back to the trauma center, watching as people were attended to with ice packs and bandages. He swallowed hard trying to blink back tears, knowing that his brother died because he only thought about one other person instead of an entire situation he was a part of. His team was in the corner of the chaos, watching Luke as he slowly approached from a distance. They looked disgusted with him, and he couldn’t help but hang his head in shame, feeling subhuman because of the death he caused. He’s not sure exactly what happened after he looked back up at them, but his face burned with an external pain. He brought a shaky hand up to feel his throbbing eye, and he realised one of them punched him. He wasn’t angry. The voices did what they did best and whispered to him quietly._

_He wasn’t angry because he knew he deserved it._

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

“Fucking hell, Fluke! Are you okay?” Smash’s voices says as he he’s coaxed back into the current reality. His eyes snap open and he shoots up, making eye contact with a shocked Wave opposite to him. He sees the glint of something on Wave’s face and realises that they’re tears. Wave is crying from the memory Luke accidentally shared with him. CalPal is rubbing Wave’s back and Luke forces himself to look away. He stands up and stumbles a bit while doing so, catching himself on the center console and grabbing his jacket.

“Fluke, wait-” Wave calls, struggling to get up from his spot on the ground but Luke holds up a hand, signalling for him to stop talking. His mouth snaps shut and he wipes his face, not breaking eye contact with Luke. Luke’s jaw unclenches and he breathes deeply.

“I don’t want to talk about it right now, and especially not here,” he says looking at CalPal, just past Wave’s shoulder. He looks hurt, but averts his gaze to the ground nonetheless. Luke knows it’s a shitty move, but after all that just happened, he has no control over what he wants to say and how he’s feeling.

“If you want to talk, you know who I am,” Luke says turning on his heel and getting in the elevator before leaving the sanctum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What happens next! Please be aware that my update schedule is once every Thursday (and it will remain this way unless I can't write the chapters fast enough!) + please know that comments and kudos motivate me to get more chapters done in a quicker amount of time!
> 
>  
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	5. V.

It’s 3 in the morning when Luke gets the call. He’d been sleeping hard, trying to forget everything that happened the day before when suddenly his device starts beeping like crazy. He thrusts a lazy hand out from under his pile of blankets and feels around the bedside table for it, sighing when he realises it must be in his pant’s pocket. He wipes the sleep from his eyes and slips out of bed, careful not to wake a slumbering Petunia to his left. He stretches his arms over his head and breathes in harshly, lungs and rib cage expanding before he finally yawns. He stands up and treks over to his laundry basket in the corner of his bathroom, once again yawning as he picks up the pants, discarded in the pile. It continues to beep relentlessly until he picks it up and checks what was on it.

‘We need to talk. Send me a meeting location.’ it reads. Luke sighs heavily and presses ‘Send Current Location’, deciding that he’d rather not leave his house at- he glances over at his alarm clock and blinks sleepily- at 3:02 in the morning. He walks further into the bathroom and nabs a hair tie off of his counter, tying his hair back but fumbling as he has yet to completely wake up. He picks up his toothbrush and wets it under the tap, adding toothpaste to the bristles and mentally applauding himself for being courteous to his unexpected guest. He spits out the toothpaste after a few minutes and splashes his face with water in a vain attempt to attain full consciousness. After he decides he’s awake enough, he walks back into the room and opens his closet, pulling out a random sweatshirt before tossing it on. He decides he’s wearing enough clothing to be decent and opens his bedroom door before walking down the hallway.

“Kitchen lights on, setting three,” he says aloud, giving the in-home system a few moments to activate. The lights turn on and slowly intensify to a dim glow, allowing Luke to see the room while not being bright enough to hurt his eyes. He digs his hands into his jacket pocket and he stretches, pushing his hands down and yawning. He puts on a kettle of water, rubbing his eyes and flattening his hair, nervous energy suddenly coming to the foreground. 

He sat at the island in his kitchen on one of the tall bar stools, cracking his stiff neck as the kettle starts to whistle. He pads over and turns the heat down until the flame is only just keeping the water warm. He pulls down a mug from the cabinet (it's a Black Panther mug. He just couldn't keep himself from buying at 4 am on another sleepless night) and adds in a sachet of chamomile tea before pouring the hot water over it. He hears a knock from the front door and his attention is immediately drawn away from his initial task. His breath catches and he knows that Wave is behind the door, and he's just as nervous as Luke. 

Luke pulls his hood over his head but doesn't pull the drawstrings, deeming the hood enough cover for the time being. It's another walk down a hallway and he's suddenly facing the front door, nerves and energy bubbling in the pit of his stomach. He takes a deep breath and holds it for a few seconds, utilizing anxiety management techniques his old therapist taught him to keep panic attacks at bay. After a minute or so, he opens the front door to a man in a hoodie and sunglasses.

“Come in,” Luke says, stepping back from the doorway as the other shuffles in, looking around the large room. Luke cant be bothered with the fact that he's standing in his foyer in nothing but a sweatshirt and boxer-briefs as a total stranger enters his house. Wave stands awkwardly as Luke shuts the front door and beckons him back towards the kitchen. They pass the living room with it's ceiling to floor glass walls and it's modern steel design, walking through a hallway and back into the kitchen which is eclectic and definitely more homey than the rest of the house. There's a skylight that allows Wave to catch a glimpse of glittering stars, which is interesting because truth be told, he didn't imagine Dr. Fluke- Luke, he corrects himself- to really be in a house anything like it. 

“Take a seat,” Luke says, motioning to a breakfast bar in the center of the kitchen as he keeps walking towards the stove to grab his cup of tea. He thinks about what's about to happen and opens his mug cabinet again, grabbing a coffee mug that proudly proclaims 'WORLDS BEST BOSS’ on one side, and has a Dunder-Mifflin Paper Company logo on the other. 

“Tea?” he asks, opening his tea container again and looking at Wave. Wave considers it for a second before nodding and Luke hums a little in approval. Luke skims briefly over Wave’s current consciousness and picks out the phrase 'green tea’ above all others, and confidently adds a sachet of green tea to his mug. He pours hot water over it and brings them to the island before turning and grabbing two spoons, and milk from the refrigerator, before sitting down. He realizes he's forgotten honey and sighs, holding out a hand and willing the honey to come to him. The honey flies from it's spot on the counter into his hand, and he carefully adds some to his tea. Wave looks impressed at how easy it all looked.

“Can I ask… where we are?” Wave says, taking it all in from behind his sunglasses. Luke takes a small sip from his mug before pouring in his milk and stirring, making his perfect cup of tea.

“This is my house,” he says, looking up at Wave from under his hood. Wave swallows and nods before taking a sip of his own tea. The silence that overcomes the both of them is intensely uncomfortable until Luke speaks.

“We're here because of what you saw in my memory,” he says quietly, moistening his lips and sighing, “I should've been more careful with my emotions today, but, now you know who I am.”

Wave nods. Luke's sure that after he left the sanctum Wave must have looked him up, coming across his impressive cyber security resume and his older brother’s obituary. He frowns at the thought and his grip tightens around his mug.

“I don't think I'll ever really understand what that day must've felt like, but judging from what I felt just in your memory?” Wave starts, pausing slightly as Luke looks up at him from his tea, “That day must've been so hard to deal with first-hand… it must've hurt like hell, and I'm so sorry, Luke.”

A lump forms in the back of Luke's throat and he can only bring himself to nod at Wave's words. He also can't help but feel strange at the way his name rolls off of Wave's tongue because after so many years of being Dr. Fluke, being anything but feels like he's starting fresh.

“I lost almost everything that was important to me that day, Wave,” he says forcing himself to look up and into Wave's eyes, still concealed by sunglasses, “I didn't just lose my brother, I lost all of my support that day. All of my future plans crumbled around me because I didn't do my job right.”

“You did what you thought was right, you can't beat yourself up over that,” Wave tries to say, but he's cut off short.

“My brother was brilliant. He's the reason I wanted to be the way I am now. I didn't even have half the intelligence he had when I was a kid, and if I hadn't been so inspired by him, I wouldn't have ever done the experiment that made me the way I am now,” Luke says, exasperation trickling into his voice, “My intelligence and grasp on reality was manufactured in a test tube, Wave.”

“But you still did it, didn't you?” Wave says, setting his mug down on the counter, “It was your experiment, right?”

“Technically, yes but-”

“You can't possibly think that your intelligence was unlocked for no reason, you must've had the catalyst somewhere inside of you. I wouldn't even have the first clue what to do in an experiment like that and yet, you did it as a kid!” Wave exclaims. Luke considers it for a few moments and takes another drink from his mug. He'd never thought about it like that. His frown deepens a bit and he looks down.

“Who are you?” Luke says, looking up and searching the sunglasses for any sign of Wave’s emotions. Wave looks taken back by the question, but he should’ve expected it after finding out so much about Luke. He took another sip of tea before setting the mug down and pulling his hood down from his face. It’s the first time he’s ever shown his face to anyone on the team, but it was bound to happen considering Wave knew his name. While his name was known to companies, more times than not his face was kept separate from his work in attempt to keep himself safe. Wave hesitates for a second before sighing and taking off his glasses. He blinks a few times from under his hoodie and pulls it down to reveal a messy head of blonde hair all parted to the right. He sets the sunglasses down on the counter and reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a pair of prescription glasses and puts them on. It’s strange for Luke to see someone he knew for years as a superhero, as himself outside of the fight. It hits Luke that he recognized Wave’s face from somewhere outside of the hero team. 

“My name is Michael Clifford,” Wave says. It dawns on him that Michael Clifford is _Michael Clifford_. The nerdy, comic-book loving Mike-ro-wave is big shot, world-renowned model Michael Clifford. The name bounces around in his head for a few moments and he shakes his head in disbelief. It’s understandable where and how Michael got his start, modelling for underground goth clothing lines and eventually moving up and earning a spot modelling for brands like Gucci and YSL. He looks at Michael and it makes sense as to why he’s still relevant in modelling, his prominent features standing out against his milky skin. 

“I’m pretty sure we talked briefly before at a fashion week after party,” Luke says, recalling a conversation a few years back. He remembers that Arzaylea had begged him to come to an event after leaving the main fashion show, and he’d begrudgingly obliged. He winces when he remembers he lost her sometime at the beginning of the night and had only tracked her down right before they left. She’d said she’d met up with other influencer friends, but Luke knows now after so many years that her excuse had not been the case. During her absence he’d sat down in one of the corners of the room and slowly drank a glass of tequila. He kept looking around for Arzaylea the whole time, but never caught a glimpse of her all night. Michael had come over to compliment his shirt and boots, and Luke vaguely remembered mumbling something back to him in response before the other walked away. Luke is aware he looked very different, short cut hair all pushed to one side, and it was before he took his lip piercing out.

“You look healthier than you did then,” Michael says looking over his features and taking a sip of tea. Luke smiles at the compliment and drinks from his mug too. They sit in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, drinking their tea and allowing for their environment to settle and rid of all bad feelings they came with in the beginning. Luke hears a familiar huff and whine from down the hall before the soft patter of claws comes towards the two men. Michael turns his head and watches expectantly as Petunia waddles out of the darkness of the hall into the light of kitchen. His eyes light up and he pats his hand against his leg in attempt to get her to come towards him. She wheezes softly and nudges her head against Michael’s foot, and he immediately reaches down to scratch behind her ears.

“And what’s your name?” He murmurs softly, smiling gently as her tail wags at the received attention. Luke can’t keep himself from smiling at the two of them and feels his chest swell with happiness.

“Her name’s Petunia,” he states comfortably, draining the last bit of tea from his mug. Luke yawns and looks at the clock next to his stove which reads 5:18 am. He’s exhausted from the events the day prior and from the meeting he and Michael had, but talking their problems through was really important for both of them in the end.

“Luke, I only have one more question for you,” Michael says, slowing his scratching of Petunia’s ears and head. Luke looks up from his mug with a look on his face that says ‘Ask away’. Michael’s attention turns back to Petunia, and he wets his lips with his tongue ahead of starting his next sentence.

“Why didn’t we ever get along when the team was together? I just… I always felt like I did something wrong,” Michael says with a frown spreading across his face. Luke traces around the rim of his mug with his pointer finger and his eyes focus on Petunia.

He remembers the day he came into the sanctum and saw CalPal and Michael sitting on the center console, CalPal’s head being cradled by the palms Michael’s hands as they kissed. Luke’s stomach sunk and he backed out before either one of them noticed that he’d come in. Even just recalling the memory makes Luke’s stomach twist into knots. He swallows the lump in the back of his throat and it burns all the way down into his core.

“Jealousy.” he says, his breathing stuttered. He curses mentally for letting himself grow so weak in front of Michael. Michael looks utterly confused by what Luke’s said. Luke closes his eyes and projects the memory into Michael’s mind, trying his best to hold it together. ‘ _Michael didn’t know_ ’, he repeats internally, years worth of sadness fading into what feels like forgiveness. It’s all so bittersweet but he knows he has to let the malice go eventually.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t know,” Michael says softly, with heartache dripping from his words. Luke’s frown returns as now he can’t stand to see Michael so upset with his past actions.

“I know you didn’t, but over time I had to accept the truth for what it was,” he says standing up from the breakfast bar and ambling over to the kitchen sink to rinse out his mug. He turns on the tap and fills the mug halfway with warm water, swirling it around to rinse the interior with water. He sighs and sets the mug down on the counter, upside down to let the water drain out completely.

“I don’t want revenge for what happened, it’s really all in the past. As much as I liked him then, it’s all different now that I have more perspective on the kind of people we both are. I just want to be friends with you, Michael,” Luke says turning back. He doesn’t think it’s what Michael was expecting to hear when his head perks up and he grins softly at Luke.

“You really want to be friends?” He questions, words rounded off in such a way that reminds Luke that he isn’t really from around _here_ anymore. Luke thinks his excitement coming out of their growing friendship is endearing enough. Luke nods as a smile spreads across his own face. He’s entirely amazed that after nearly four years of separation and eight years of rivalry came to an end in the span of two hours. The situation strengthens Luke’s belief in settling things peacefully and makes him more hopeful in the wake of the team coming together again. Michael yawns from over by the bar stools and is almost immediately mirrored by Luke, both men yawning and glancing over at the clock. Michael rubs his tired eyes, lifting his glasses up a bit and wiping in an unavailing attempt to clear the sleep from his eyes.

“I’m assuming you’re staying in a hotel of some sorts while you’re here,” Luke says, untying his hair from the top knot and shaking it out. Michael nods and stifles a yawn prior to pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Luke shrugs nonchalantly, also suppressing a yawn before he continues, “I think it’s a little too early to be driving back after such a tiring conversation, and I just so happen to have a vacant room that’s ready for such occasions.”

Luke considers all the possibilities that could take place if Michael leaves and tries to drive with such little sleep. None of the outcomes are good as the least dangerous scenario ends in Michael being forced to sleep outside his hotel room as he forgets the keycard in the center console of his car. Luke really doesn’t think leaving is a good idea and follows up by saying, “Even if you do get back safely, there’s an 89 percent chance you’ll end up locked outside of your room until morning because you left your room key in your car due to your exhaustion.”

Michael rolls his eyes and chuckles at Luke’s not-so-subtle effort to keep him off the road at 5 am. Luke knows he’s finally managed to convinced him to stay the night, as it is the safest option in the end, and mentally high fives himself.

“I’ll stay here tonight if it makes you feel better, Hemmings,” Michael says softly as he follows Luke down the hall and into the guest room. Luke doesn’t even have time to make sure Michael has everything he wants because the second he turns back from looking in the closet, he finds that Michael is already out. He shakes his head and walks back to his room, closing the door behind him. He makes it to his own room and falls back into bed and is asleep almost as soon as he arrived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH!! So far this is the first chapter where nothing bad happened to anyone! (It's not really going to stay like that, oops!) Feel free to give me feedback, or tell me what the best part about this chapter was, I love reading everyone's comments and will try to respond to them when I can!
> 
> Schedule Update: Due to starting a new job, I cannot write chapters as often as I have been for the past 3 months, meaning I will start to only post once every two weeks. I can try to write as much as possible on weekends to try and keep my current schedule, but it might not be possible. Sorry ))):
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	6. VI.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: I FUCKED UP THE CHAPTER AND ONLY POSTED LIKE 3/4 OF IT I'M SO SORRY

_Luke’s eyes snap open, blinding lights strobing above him and making it nearly impossible to focus on his surrounding. His mind feels like it’s moving a thousand miles a minute and he has to concentrate on breathing to even stay conscious. He can vaguely hear a heart monitor beeping in the background, but everything is so fuzzy for him. His vision begins to pulsate with this his eyes and everything glows red._

_“Luke! Are you awake? Is he awake?” he hears his mum say from what he thinks is his mind. He finds it incredibly disturbing that her voice is so detached from the figure he sees talking at the foot of his bed. He also thinks he can see someone else, clothed in a white coat and grasping a clipboard. There’s a stutter in the heart machine and he has to focus on breathing again, becoming increasingly scared of the situation. Everything seems to go silent for a few moments until he pinpoints the soft murmurs in the crown of his skull. A cold feeling shoots up his spine and his body tremors in the bed. He hears his mother gasp and the doctor buzzes something in the room and calls for nurses to come in._

_Luke’s breathing becomes more rapid as a few nurses come in with anaesthetic. Someone holds his body down against the bed and he wants nothing more than to fight back.There’s a noise caught in the back of his throat and he starts shaking again. The nurses talk to each other, but they’re so quiet Luke can’t hear them over the buzzing voices. He feels like his head is in a beehive and he wants nothing more than for it to be gone._

_His lungs constrict inside of his body and his breathing seizes for a few seconds. The nurses get louder and so do the voices, leaving his mind a jumbled mess of undecipherable words. The heart monitor flat lines and Luke can hear his mother’s breathing hitch. No no no no no, I can’t let it all end like that, he thinks inhaling sharply. He exhales a sour breath and all seems to be back to normal. His mother exhales a breath she didn’t know she was holding in and seems to be relieved that his breathing is back to normal. They administered a sedative to him, and it was enough to stop his heart, if not only for a few seconds._

_He feels sick, like his insides are being twisted with red hot pokers but he can’t scream in pain. He shifts slightly in the hospital bed and his vision goes white. There’s a harsh ringing in his ear and it takes all his focus not to blackout and potentially cause a catastrophic event_

_“He seems to be overdosing on an unidentifiable chemical,” the doctor says glancing over at him, “Or the chemical has integrated with his blood stream.”_

_Liz says something under her breath and the meds start to kick in. Once identifiable voices and conversation sound garbled and feel like they’re becoming distant. The extreme pain he feels dulls in the pit of his stomach. It feels as if someone has picked him up off the bed and put him into a hot bath. It soothes the pain inside, but makes him feel more isolated as time goes on._

_Soon enough, he can’t hear anything outside of the bathtub he’s slowly sinking into. His eyes flutter shut and he holds his breath as his face sinks below. The doctor says something to his mother, but Luke can’t hear any of it. The warmth subsides too and Luke feels like he’s suddenly been thrust into icy waters. He tries to kick away at the grips on his ankles but nothing seems to work. They’re still talking and Luke feels like he’s being forcefully dragged into the unknown. Years later he deciphers internally that the description of what he remembers, is about as accurate as he’ll ever be to what happened. The doctor says something important and his mother gasps. It’s so faint to him. She sounds scared but Luke can only feel himself sinking further and further down._

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

_“Luke, are you ready?” Luke hears from the other side of the door. Truthfully, he’ll never be ready for what’s to come. He feels like everything that happened to Jack was his fault. It was his fault because even though he thought what he was doing was right, it was only right for the people he had been focusing on. He looks in the mirror and a terrible, tear-stained, snot-nosed monster stares back at him with lifeless eyes. He swallows harshly and forces himself to look away before he can point out all of his flaws. He feels like that’s what he deserves. He sighs and makes his way over to the door and opens it to his mother on the other side. She looks just as heartbroken, and Luke can’t stand to look at her. He averts his gaze to the ground and his breathing becomes erratic._

_“The service will start in an hour, we need to be at the church before then.” she says softly, looking over Luke and managing to catch glimpses of Jack mirrored in him. Luke nods, keeping silent and continuing to not look at her. She brings a hand up to his chin and brings his face up, trying to see his eyes better. Tears leak from his tear ducts in a steady stream and they hold such a deep sadness that her heart falls deeper into her chest. His face tightens up and it’s only seconds before his face is buried in the crook of her neck. He can’t hold back the intense emotion as sobs rack through his body. His arms are holding tight to her much smaller frame for support, because the weight of his guilt is becoming too much for him to handle alone._

_“Jack is gone and it’s all my fault, it’s all my fault,” he cries, feeling like everything that has ever gone wrong is his fault. Liz doesn’t know what else to do other than hold him close and kiss his forehead. She doesn't know why Luke is blaming himself, but all she knows is no matter how much he blames himself, it won't make him feel any better about Jack's death._

_“It was just an accident, Luke. A terrible accident, you can’t blame yourself,” she says softly, tears rolling down her cheeks because she can’t stand to see her youngest son in such an awful state of mind. Luke’s crying only becomes more intense and she swallows harshly._

_“He didn’t deserve it, he… he should’ve lived to be an old man with a family,” Luke says, faltering halfway through his sentence to collect his thoughts. It hurts so much more now that he’s had a few days to process what happened. He hugs his mother tighter and never wants to let her go, he can’t let the same fate befall her._

_There’s a knock on Luke’s doorframe. He looks up to see the stately yet melancholy face of his eldest brother, Ben. He’d been away at university and came home as soon as possible when he heard about what happened to Jack. Luke and Jack had been inseparable as kids, but Jack had been Ben’s an entire three years before Luke was born. He knows how hard it is to lose a brother now, but he’ll never be able to grasp what Ben felt upon finding out about Jack’s death._

_“Mum, we’d better get going,” he says quietly. He briefly catches Luke’s grief-filled gaze, and his exterior softens. Liz pulls away from Luke and rubs his cheek before she turns to Ben, turning her full attention to his older brother. They both leave Luke’s room and everything seems so much lonelier. Luke doesn’t feel like he should’ve been the sibling to live, his entire existence expendable compared to the natural brilliance Jack brought wherever he went. The survivor’s guilt is killing him, and whispers to him that Jack would’ve lived if Luke wasn’t so reckless with his actions._

_The drive to the church is silent and awkward. Ben sits next to him in the backseat and his parents are silent in the front seat. Luke watches the outside world carry on as it always does even though he feels broken internally. He doesn’t think it’s fair that his brother is dead, and that the world gets to keep spinning like Jack never even existed. He has to swallow red hot tears that are so bitter because it really isn’t worth crying over. Jack is gone whether he likes it or not._

_The mass is about as nice as Luke could’ve imagined. It’s hard not to break down when he gets up to Jack’s coffin. His face looks drained of all life, and the vivacious man Luke once knew ceases to exist. The hardest thing he pushes himself to do is touch Jack’s hand. His skin feels waxy and cold to the touch, and nothing like the Jack he remembers. The real, understanding, living and warm Jack. He starts crying again at the foot of the stairs, wiping at his face and babbling through his tears,_

_“Mumma, he’s so cold… he’s so cold,”_

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

Luke woke up to sunlight streaming through the windows and directly into his eyes. He groaned loudly and pulled one of his pillows over his eyes to block out the light. He knew it had to be at least past noon, but he couldn't be sure until he looked at a clock. He heard Petunia whine from the foot of the bed and realised he hadn’t let her out at all since the day before. He shot up out of bed and scurried to the back door, sliding it back and giving Petunia the much needed opportunity to go outside. He yawned, pulling his hair tie out and running his fingers through his hair, detangling the knots and shaking it out. His scalp is a little sore, but it’s nothing a hot shower won't soothe, he thinks silently. He drags himself to his bathroom and strips, turning the water as high as it can go. The sheer heat of it leaves angry red trails cascading down his skin, but he needs to to feel alive and to snap out of thinking about the dreams he had during the night.

He hadn’t had dreams about Jack’s funeral or the key in a long time. They’d mostly stopped after months of intense therapy he attended multiple times a week. He thinks that maybe it’s a side effect of coming to know Michael. He shakes his head, dismissing the thought because logically Michael may have only been the spark to reignite his memories of the events. He pours some shampoo in his hands and scrubs at this scalp, thinking deeply about it all.

He comes to the conclusion that it doesn’t matter.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

“Hey, good morning,” Luke says as Michael comes stumbling into the kitchen. Petunia huffs and Michael mumbles something to her before getting on one knee to pet her. He almost falls on his butt trying to get up from the position, and all Luke can do is laugh. He sticks his tongue out at Luke, holding no malice for the other. He wipes at his eyes with his clean hand and tosses his hair back. Michael then reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls his glasses out, putting them on and blinking. He takes in his surroundings, now bathed in natural sunlight and looks even more impressed. 

“You want to get breakfast?” Michael asks, pointing in the general direction of Luke’s front door. Luke is positive he doesn’t want to cook after a night like the one they had and agrees. He grabs his keys from the counter and follows Michael outside, locking the front door when they're out. Michael unlocks his car and motions for Luke to get in. He turns back and looks at the exterior of Luke’s house.

“Damn Hemmings, this place is extra as fuck,” he says getting in, shaking his head the whole time. Luke rolls his eyes and scoffs in a playful manner.

“Oh, shut up, my house is amazing!” he says as his voice gets louder, emulating his inner Californian. Michael howls with laughter at the impression as they take off down the road. Luke decides that Michael is one of the safest drivers he’s ever ridden with and make a mental note about it. Michael turns on the radio and tells Luke to play something good. He grabs his phone from his back pocket, angling his hips up so he can grab it without reaching around himself too much. He connects to Michael’s aux input and plays The Local Black and Red by Phantom Planet. Michael looks at Luke with a weird look and Luke can only chuckle.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

Breakfast consists of pastries from a local bakery and coffee in a locally owned coffee shop. Michael tells Luke they would’ve gone to Starbucks if he wasn’t so recognizable. It’s less likely he’ll be found in a smaller coffee shop, but it isn’t a guarantee. Luke thinks it’s understandable, so they dig into their pastries in the corner of a tiny coffee shop near the outermost parts of the downtown area.

“It’s still so weird that this is is your life,” Luke says trying to catch glimpses of Michael’s eyes from behind the dark lenses. Michael shrugs it off and sighs.

“I’d always thought I’d be a smaller model forever, y’know, maybe just Hot Topic forever,”

“Hot Topic?” Luke says scrunching up his nose. He’s familiar with the name, but he knows it’s not an Australian thing. Michael’s original model brand hadn’t really been an Australian thing either, so it makes sense he found more fame in the U.S.

“Like a… smaller goth or indie model. I wasn’t expecting to be called into fashion week. It’s more common now for models with large instagram followings to be used in shoots and in bigger scale events like that,” he explains taking a sip from his coffee. Luke supposes he understands it in the sense that models who are more well known are better candidates to be used on the runway. Michael is definitely famous on media platforms though, as not to understate his fame in a large way. 

“Seems like a lot on your shoulders, “ he says before biting into a cheese danish. Michael nods and runs a hand through his hair. The world of modelling may not rest solely on Michael’s shoulders, but there is definitely a lot of pressure on him as one of the largest influencers in the business.

“It’s fucked. I always have to be in top condition in case I get called to do shoots for campaigns and shit,” Michael says breathing out, “and so many of the photographers are insufferable. They expect every photo to be magazine quality, and while I understand why that’s _desirable_ , it’s not always plausible!”

Luke nods and takes Michael’s frustrations with his line of work to heart. Luke finds the whole concept of the darker side of modelling industry to be somewhat jaded by the glamour of being a model. It’s just then something flashing outside the window catches his attention and Michael freezes.

“Fuck, we have to go,” Michael says standing up from his seat and throwing down some money as a tip for the baristas. He pulls the hood from his hoodie up and sighs, “Put on your sunglasses, Luke.”

Luke nods as they exit the building before being bombarded by an entire swarm of paparazzi. It only take a few seconds and Luke understands why celebrities call them pigs. It’s hard to maneuver around them all and he can feel his breathing grow heavier as they push into him and take pictures of him. The flashing burns his eyes and leaves overexposed images floating behind his eyelids. It’s incredibly intense and Luke’s respect for Michael doubles in a matter of seconds.

“Mr. Clifford, what are your upcoming campaigns?” one says, adjusting his camera to zoom into Michael’s face.

“You haven’t been back in months, what is your stance on the legalization of gay marriage?” a woman says holding a notebook and pen in each hand as she’s closely flanked by a camera man who takes interest in Luke.

“Mr. Clifford, who was the mysterious girl you were spotted with before leaving Los Angeles?” another says, yelling at the two of them.

“Who is this mystery blonde your with right now?” a man says, being pushed from behind, his flash going off every few seconds.

“Are you two dating?”

Michael manages to ignore the wave of questions directed at him and leads Luke back to his car. As soon as it’s possible they both get in and Michael speeds away from the scene. It takes a few minutes before Luke’s breathing slows down and he doesn’t feel like he’s being threatened anymore. Luke takes off his sunglasses and looks at Michael with a bewildered look spread across his features.

“Jesus Michael, how can you deal with that?!” He almost yells, because the amount of self control he had dwindled as the seconds dragged on. He can’t imagine how many years of that Michael has endured since his career began to blow up. The thought of it makes Luke feel sick because no one should have their privacy invaded like that.

“That’s just my life,” He sighs, stopping at a red light. Luke frowns and takes his phone out. One of the trending Twitter topics across the country is #mikeysbf and currently all of Michael’s fans are currently on a witch hunt to find Luke’s media accounts. He finds the whole situation terrifying, as it’s a brand new experience all because he and Michael are friends. He feels incredibly paranoid to the point where he immediately changes all of his profile pictures to photos of Petunia, and privates the accounts he can. He leans back in his seat and covers his face with his hands.

“Fuck.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm planning on writing as many chapters as possible in the coming weeks to get a normal posting schedule back, but for now please tell me how this vhapter was!
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	7. VII.

After leaving the coffee shop, Michael began to drive, not really giving Luke any clues as to where. Luke was shaken up after the incident of running into the swarm paparazzi that found them outside. Rationally he knew someone took the time to contact them, but in the depths of his mind his most paranoid side argued that Michael’s moves were monitored and their location was exposed by his IP address. Every breath he took was uneven, fear and irrationality starting to set in as they fled the scene. He took a moment to clear his mind, not dwelling on how creepy he sounded to himself and trying to forget everything that just happened.

“Is it alright if we go back to my hotel?” Michael asked, gripping the steering wheel with an intensity that turned his knuckles white before letting go. Luke swallowed harshly and nodded, feeling the palms of his hands go clammy over his knees. He wiped them on the dark material of his jeans and let out a shaky breath he didn’t know he’d been holding in. Michael looked over at him with concern flashing in his eyes. Luke felt like he was on the verge of a meltdown, but he couldn’t let go while Michael was driving. 

Luke tried to control his breathing, inhaling for eight seconds, holding his breath for six and exhaling for another eight seconds, similar to how his therapist taught him to do the year before. His eyes locked on a bumper sticker that was on the car in front of them, and it helped to drown out the anxiety that was causing his heart to pound like a bass drum in his ribcage. Michael said something that he couldn’t quite decipher and he responded the only way he knew how to, with a hum and a nod. Michael’s hands tightened around the steering wheel as they turned into the parking area of a grand looking hotel. Luke’s eyes widened in surprise, looking from Michael to the building and back again. While he knew Michael was a model, he seemed very humble in comparison to the models he’d met thanks to his ex-girlfriend. 

Michael drove around the front where a valet greeted them, taking Michael’s keys and car elsewhere. The facade of the building had been so grand and unlike anything Luke was used to. He supposed the life of the famous came with expectations of a grandeur lifestyle. He personally believed the splendor of it all was overshadowed by the intense pressure of expected perfection to the public. The lobby of the hotel was a blur to Luke, as everything was too much to comprehend until the two of them were in the elevator. Michael pressed a button up to the fourth floor and the glass doors closed, allowing them to see everyone in the lobby behind a screen of glass. He thinks that it’s what being famous must be like.

“Someone’s about to call you,” Luke said mere moments before Michael’s phone started ringing in his pocket. Luke didn’t even have to eavesdrop to know the conversation was about him. From the way Michael glanced at him with worry flashing behind his eyes, he knew it couldn't have been good.

“Thanks for letting me know, keep me updated,” Michael said before pulling his phone away from his ear and ending the call. Luke took off his sunglasses and swallowed harshly, eyes locking with Michael’s. They both looked incredibly worried to the other, but it seemed like it was all they could do in the situation they were faced with.

“That was my manager. Apparently there are media outlets offering thousands of dollars to know who you are. Not to mention my fans are looking through social media and public records to know who you are,” He said, voice catching uncomfortably on the word _fans_. Luke ran a hand through his hair and sighed deeply. The elevator doors opened and they stepped out, Luke not daring to speak again until they were in the comfort of Michael’s hotel room.

“They’re going to find me, I know it,” Luke said gloomily, sitting down on the bed in the center of the room. Michael looked confused, grabbing a water bottle from the mini fridge up against one of the walls. Luke focused on the humming inside the walls but quickly averted his attention back to Michael.

“My ex-girlfriend is a social media influencer. We never really dealt with paparazzi like...like earlier, but we had been photographed together. She’s big enough that they’ll find me, I know it,” he said recounting his past relationship, and what he knew was bound to happen. He was freaking out about what was inevitable, but also trusted Michael with making sure everything would be okay in the long run.

“I’ll have my team look into contacting her people and removing all traces of you from her social media,” Michael said typing something in iMessage. It sent a wave of relief over Luke and he felt like he could’ve cry. He looked at Michael and had the urge to hug him, but decided against it, burying his head between his knees and exhaling with relief.

“Thank you so much Michael, I’d probably be having a meltdown right now if you’d dropped me at home,” Luke said with a watery laugh, feeling hot tears well in his eyes. He didn’t realise how afraid he’d been of the situation until his mental floodgates broke. Every aspect of his life for the past few weeks had been a mess, ranging from the impulsive decision of contacting the team, to the vivid recollections of what happened when he was in the hospital and even Jack’s funeral. He wondered if he should talk about it with Michael.

“What do you suppose dreams mean?” He blurted out, folding his hands and falling back on Michael's mattress. It was an odd question without context, but he'd needed answers about everything that was going on. Michael looked deep in thought for a few minutes, brows furrowing and mouth straightening out into a thoughtful line. Luke studied his features as his thought was evident on his face and patiently waited for an answer.

“I believe dreams show us the things we need to see or have forgotten about,” Michael said breathing out, looking Luke deep in the eyes. His breath caught in his throat because looking into Luke's eyes was strangely like gazing into galaxies light years away. He had known since the first day that Luke held nearly all of the universe's secrets, but it had been in that moment when he truly understood it all. Perhaps Luke was the universe and he simply didn't know. It was an odd thing he had never really considered up until that point. From what he had seen in Luke's memories, his older brother had been born with a similar ability to Luke’s (albeit less potent). He tore his gaze away back to his phone, briefly thinking about the possibility before pushing it away.

“I’ve been having bad dreams all week. I didn’t really think much about them until last night when I dreamed about my brother’s funeral for the first time since we had his funeral,” he said, briefly recalling the day Jack was buried. Luke had been in a sour mood after they’d stepped out of the church and the sun was beaming. He thought it wasn’t fair that the weather was so nice on such a melancholic day. He also remembered that years later he had been grateful for the sun rather than a gloomy atmosphere- that would’ve crushed his parents and he couldn’t have beared watching that.

Michael looked thoughtful for a few seconds after hearing what Luke had to say. 

“Maybe it’s because of our reconciliation?”

Luke stopped and nodded, as the words seemed to affirm what he first thought about the dreams. It didn’t necessarily mean that their friendship wasn’t meant to be, but it concluded (for him at least) that bringing back such a pivotal time in his life would be bound to pull up more memories and experiences from that time. It didn’t explain his flashbacks to the hospital, but it was nice knowing that Michael would be with him through it.

He looked over at Michael who was typing something on his phone. He looked stressed and sighed when a new message alert popped up on his screen. He threw his phone down on the bed and took his hat off to run a hand through his fluffy blonde hair. Luke gave him a puzzled look before Michael opened his mouth to speak.

“Do you want to go out for a drink?”

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

Luke hadn’t thought Michael’s idea of a drink was to go down to the hotel’s bar and try to get wasted.

They’d been there for a little over two hours, ordering countless rounds of drinks. Luke hadn’t drunk so heavily since he’d broken up with Arzaylea, and even then it hadn’t been this bad. Luke silently considered that something was going on in Michael’s life that he wasn’t ready to talk about. He continued to sip a Jack and Coke as Michael ordered another round of vodka shots. After taking one, his face screwed up as the liquid heat dripped down his throat. Luke chuckled at the expression and Michael stuck his tongue out at him. 

At that point, Luke knew it was inevitable for another barrage of paparazzi to find them drinking in the glass-walled hotel, but it didn’t matter then. That night was about drinking away whatever was going on in Michael’s head.  
He finished up his drink as a flash went off behind Michael. He didn’t think he would have such a visceral reaction to it, but his brain went into panic mode. Luke quickly fumbled for a large pair of glasses that were in his jacket pocket. He quickly put them on and looked at Michael with a serious look. His eyes widened and he scrambled for his own glasses before finding them and jumping off the bar stool. He stumbled out of the bar before motioning for Luke to follow him. Luke threw enough money on the counter to cover his binge, and muttered to the bartender to put the rest on Michael’s tab before running after him. Several more flashes came from behind the glass before he made it to the elevator Michael was in.

“God, they know my hotel, I’m so fucked,” Michael said hitting his head against one of the walls of the elevator. Luke sighed and pulled off his sunglasses.

“Look, they still probably don’t know who I am. We’ll be fine, Michael,” he said, rubbing his temples as the alcohol really started to kick in. The edges of his vision started to blur and his brain felt a little like someone had taken a hand mixer to it. He helped Michael walk to his room, using the key card to open the door and then proceeded to lay him out on the king sized bed. Luke fell back on the bed, his torso right next to Michael’s head.

“How did everything get so crazy, Luke? I’m not sure if this is the life I wanted,” Michael said quietly, staring at the chandelier that hung above them. Luke heard noises from the room next door that sounded like a headboard being knocked against the wall and he slightly cringed. He turned his attention back to Michael.

“I know how you feel, but sometimes? All we can do is hope that things get better,” He said, pulling off Michael’s hat and drunkenly running a hand through his fluffy hair. Michael closed his eyes and let out a soft breath. Luke pulled out his phone and opened his Spotify account. A song came to his head that he hadn’t thought about for a while, but it felt perfect for the moment. 

“Hey Luke?” Michael said, eyes still closed as he slowly let himself sink into the comfort of having Luke there with him.

“Hm?” Luke returned, his own eyes struggling to remain open as his system floods with the numerous Jack and Cokes he downed earlier on. The lights in the room seemed to dim with every passing second but he wouldn’t give in so easily.

“Thank you for… being here. It means a lot to me,” Michael murmured, resting his hands over his chest as his breathing leveled out. 

“No problem,” Luke yawned out, just as the opening of Plainsong by The Cure lulled him into another dream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the silence the past three weeks! Up until this past weekend I was having a hard time determining what direction this fic would be going in until I sat down and wrote this full chapter! Hopefully things are still interesting for those of you reading this! I'm truly so sorry I had to take an extra week to write this!!! Please leave comments about what you think about it so far!
> 
>  
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	8. VIII.

Luke wasn’t sure where he was when the dream came into focus. He looked around, taking in the surroundings but not recognizing any of it. He could immediately tell that it was someone’s house, as there was a large living room set up and pictures hung up on the walls around him. He stepped carefully towards one, but couldn’t make out the figures in it. He blinked harshly a few times, but they never really came into focus. He rubbed his eyes with his hands, eyes straining due to the blurriness of the house. He heard a dog bark from the other room and followed the sound, stopping in his tracks when he heard footsteps coming towards him. His body went rigid as the footsteps drew closer, but his form flickered as something- _someone_ walked through him. A cold sweat came over his body as the figure kept walking, followed closely by another person.

“I can’t believe you took _that_ job,” one of the voices said in a disgusted tone. Their voice had an airy quality to it and would’ve been comforting in any other situation. Their shorter frame was topped with a head of wavy pink hair that was tied up in a messy ponytail. Luke cringed slightly at the words and backed up into a dark corridor, watching the scene unfold before him.

“Babe, this is my job. I can’t just say no to what keeps food on the table and clothes in your closet,” the other voice said in a venomous tone. Their face was harder to see from far away, but Luke could point out a shock of pale blonde hair covered by some kind of hat. Luke was glad he couldn’t see the pink-haired person’s face because the comment was enough to shock him. In that moment he also felt as if he was watching something he wasn’t supposed seeing any of what was happening.

“That’s a low blow, even from you, Michael,” spat the first of the two- the pinkette? Luke doesn’t know the term, but his thoughts are blown out of the water when he realised the name she called the blonde. _Michael_.

“What do you expect me to say? I don’t even have any kind of independence when I’m with you anymore!” Michael says walking closer to the second person. His face has come into view and a thin veil of pink covers his face, anger becoming more apparent by the second. Luke steps further back into the corridor and holds his breath, observing everything the two of them do in the safety of the shadows.

“I don’t control your life, Michael! God, being with you is like babysitting! You don’t listen to me when I say no to things!” they yell, jabbing a finger in the soft flesh between Michael’s chest and his collarbone. Michael’s face drops for a split second, sadness visible until it quickly flips into a deep set scowl.

“You’re not my mother, but by the way you expect me to live you might as well be,” he says pushing their hand off of his chest. His jaw clenches and he turns his back from them.

“You are such a fucking child, Michael. You’re supposed to be twenty-two years old, but how do you expect to live or even keep a fucking girlfriend when you don’t even bother to listen to me, or your manager. All you ever talk about is your stupid high school friends and your meaningless campaigns,” they say with an evident sneer in their voice. It clicks in his head that Michael lived in an abusive setting with whoever this person was. They don’t look like they’d be a threat to Michael, but it’s clear that behind closed doors they tore him to shreds over things he couldn’t control. His fists ball up and his own jaw clenches as Michael’s gaze falls to the floor.

“All I ever do is listen to you… my whole life is dictated by you, I… get out.”

The pink-haired person mutters under their breath and stomps past Luke, headed further into the house for who knows what. Luke watches as Michael’s exterior falters until the stomping comes towards him again. He puts on a strong façade, but Luke knows it’s all for show. They come back into the room carrying a large bag and holding two leashes. Michael swallows harshly and folds his arms over his chest, shaking his head as they put on a pair of expensive looking sunglasses and scowl at him.

“Call me when you’re ready to be a man.”

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

Luke's head was pounding when he woke up, the taste of day old alcohol on his breath. He cursed silently as the sun shone through the curtains of Michael's room and only added to the headache he was experiencing. Michael shifted on the bed next to him and suddenly his dream came rushing back to him. He groaned aloud, knowing the dream must've been something Michael had gone through recently.

 _Maybe it's the reason he's back in Sydney_ , a voice whispered from his subconscious. He swallowed harshly and nodded to himself, agreeing silently that everything that happened prior to coming home to Sydney must've been what he saw in Michael's dream.

He feels his heart clench, remembering what the pink-haired person said to Michael after their fight. He knew tensions were high, but the things they said to him were soul crushing and hurt like hell (even to Luke who didn't know the whole situation). He could only imagine the other things Michael must've endured while he was with them. Michael mumbled under his breath next to him, the smell of vodka coming off his lips. Luke’s stomach churned and he sat up, turning away from the other and gagging behind his hand. Michael was his friend, but the morning-after breath and the guilt of what happened the night before made him feel sick.

He stood up, pushing his jacket off of his lap and walking to the bathroom. He pushed the frosted glass door open and stumbled to the sink. His chest was heaving heavily and his stomach felt like it was in a tight knot. He couldn’t stop his feet from taking him to the toilet bowl, his knees hitting the ground and his stomach emptying into the bowl. His eyes watered as he vomited everything from the day before up. His eyes and throat burned from the alcohol and the stomach acid in the toilet, his face hovering only inches away. He coughed harshly when he finally finished, feeling sick but feeling glad that it was all over and done with.

He silently cursed when he heard the sheets rustling from the other room an a soft yawn. Michael was awake. He stood up with wobbly knees and took a piece of toilet paper to wipe his mouth. He spit one last time into the toilet and flushed it down, rinsing his mouth with mouthwash on the counter before going back into the room. Michael was on the bed, looking just as bad as Luke when he opened his mouth to speak.

“We should change.”

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

After putting on new clothes (Michael letting Luke borrowing a new shirt and pants), they began to drive back to the sanctum. They left the hotel through the back entrance to avoid any paparazzi who might’ve still been lingering outside of the hotel. Luke sat in the driver’s seat, hands wringing around the steering wheel at every red light they hit. It was slightly annoying to anyone who knew him, but it was a habit he’d never grown out of. His hands never really got sweaty when he was behind the wheel, but constantly moving was something that helped distract him from his mind.

“Thanks for drinking with me last night… I think I needed it,” Michael said quietly, rubbing his hands on the dark material of his pants with anxiety evident in his voice. His breathing seemed unsteady to Luke, fear coming through as one of his stronger emotions. Luke pursed his lips and sighed quietly.

“I know you did.”

Michael turned to look at Luke with a somewhat knowing look. He swallowed harshly before turning his gaze back to the road. They both sat in an awkward silence for a few brief moments, not daring to speak to the other. Luke knows being in the dream was an invasion of Michel’s privacy, but he couldn’t stop watching while it was all happening. Michael licks his lips before opening his mouth to speak.

“So... So you know about Crystal?” Michael said calmly, beginning to scratch at his pants. Luke was tempted to tell him to stop, but Michael was bound to be anxious about it all. 

Luke hadn’t ever been in the same position as Michael, so he could never fully understand what a relationship like that was like. He thought back to when he was still with Arzaylea. His heart drops a little, remembering how much she had meant to him before finding out about her cheating. Even before the fact, they had both known their relationship was broken, all missteps and slip ups adding up to a fractured home. Luke was often caught between his work and Arzaylea’s, having to make a choice on whether or not he’d work or he’d go on PR trips with her. Sometimes Arz would cry and ask him why he didn’t care about her, or why he didn’t love her enough anymore. He shakes the thoughts away with a grimace. He didn’t want to think about the toxicity of their relationship anymore.

“Yeah… I’m really sorry you had to live like that, Mike.”

Michael shrugged and looked down at his hands, a visual indication that the conversation was over. Luke sighed, watching the cars in the intersection go past the two of them, lives of those driving them differing so much from their own. It was hard seeing his friend so upset over something. Luke feels sick, his stomach churning deep inside of him. Actively watching the dream and processing it was a mistake, he thought silently, eyes glancing up as the light flashed from red to green.

He kept driving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HI. HELLO. I'M ALIVE. 
> 
> sorry this chapter took another three weeks!! just started my junior year, and finding time to edit this chapter has been difficult to find. This chapter has been proof-read by two of my friends, but my editor hasn't looked it over yet (Don't worry, she'll get around to it when she can and I will correct the mistakes in this current version once she has given me feedback). I truly hope you enjoy this chapter, and please don't hesitate to comment below with what you liked/any thoughts on what's going on. I will be replying to these ones (I haven't been responding this far because of how busy I was with work, but that's no longer a worry!)
> 
> ALSO! my new updating schedule will be on a Friday, once every two weeks (as long as I can get this all edited and all written!)
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://benlangfordbiss.tumblr.com)


	9. IX.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM BACK
> 
> ( im so sorry this chapter took so long. i went through a terrible bout of writers block in august and scrapped the original version of this chapter because i knew it wasnt good enough to see the light of day. this chapter has been unedited/unbeta'd because i wanted to get it out as soon as possible <3 )

They pulled into a parking lot a few streets over from the sanctum, still silent from the awkward conversation only minutes before. Michael’s lips were pursed and Luke felt like he struck a chord with him he shouldn’t have. He should’ve just ignored it or forced himself away from the dream while it was happening. Luke pulled into a parking spot, shifting gears into park mode before killing the engine. Michael was still silent. He could’ve just as easily been yelling at Luke and he still would’ve felt as bad as he did then. The silent treatment was something Luke could hardly bear, even under any other circumstances.

“Michael I really am sorry for tapping into your dream, but it wasn’t something I could completely control,” Luke says, scratching at his jeans as a way to ground himself before he could go nuclear. He can’t stand Michael not talking to him because of the memories it brings back. The days and weeks Arzaylea went without talking to him, or messaging him, leaving him in the dark while she was off galavanting across L.A with _him_. He grimaces and looks down at his fingers picking at the lightly frayed denim of his jeans, he has to force himself to stop thinking about her. Michael swallows harshly from the passenger seat and shakes his head softly.

“I don’t really care that _you_ saw it, but…. Just having anyone know makes me feel like a kid. I feel like out there, in California, everything I did was just me being a stupid kid with a career that’s never going to pay off. No one really thought that modeling would get me anywhere and said I should’ve given up earlier and came home… gone back to college and pursued university. My parents didn’t know I was coming home because I was too scared to tell them that I was living in an…. In an abusive situation….” Michael says, choking over the word ‘abusive’. His eyes are downcast and they shine red, tears welling up an he has to swallow them like a hot ember soaked in reality. Luke’s heart jumps to his throat and he doesn’t think he can control any of his words, almost like his subconscious has taken control over the things Michael needs to hear.

“Michael, nothing that happened to you was your fault, an being a victim doesn’t make you weak or any less capable of living a full life. You may never be comfortable telling your parents what happened to you, but finding a network of people who are willing to listen and help you is so important for your mental health. Even if I’m the only person you ever show, I’m more than glad to help you to any extent you want,” He says leaning over the center console of the car to hug Michael.

Michael leans into Luke’s arms, struggling to fully hug him due to his seatbelt keeping him restrained. The moment is sweet and it means a lot to both of them, even if it feels like something that will never be spoken of again. It’s a silent seal of their friendship when they pull away, looking each other in the eyes and truly understanding why being a team is better than being alone.

△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽△▽

They get into the sanctum after walking from the car, Luke acting as a lookout for Michael before following him inside. Luke does his signature superhero jump and lands at the bottom with a loud smack due to his boots. Michael claps for comedic effect and Luke smiles at him, pushing himself up with his hands. Michael looks around before walking into his old area, once filled with combat training equipment but since emptied. He sighs softly, digging his hands into his pockets as Luke walks in. 

“I’m sorry it’s empty. I was debating filling it with new equipment,” He says, twisting one of the rings around his fingers. Michael waves it off and continues to look around at the room. There are scuffs all over the walls from years of intense training an honing in on his already superb fighting ability. Luke remembers days spent watching Michael train, thinking about each of his moves before attacking dummies with no mercy. He remembers why he’d always been so intimidated by him, even though he’d outgrown Michael many years earlier. But now, Michael was no longer his enemy or a threat. Michael was one of few people he could trust, even if they’d only formally met a few days before, Luke felt like they’d known each other for ages. 

“You know, I haven’t really fought since being on the team,” Michael says quietly, his voice echoing slightly. Luke frowns ever so slightly. It’s well known that they’d never been close when the team was together, but everyone knew how much combat meant to Michael, and how much he’d train to master new styles of fighting. His power came in handy in times of combat, picking up fighting styles and briefly analyzing them before mastering them in a matter of seconds. Luke initially had been jealous, not seeing his power having any use in a team like theirs but over time, he realized he hadn’t tapped into his own understanding of hand-to-hand combat. That isn’t say he started though, as he himself hadn’t really trained either, but he started working out, becoming stronger but not necessarily a better fighter.

“We can get this place set up again in a few days. For now I think we should call Smash and Cal-Pal back,” Luke says, taking his team device out of his pocket. Michael silently nods as Luke swipes through it, calling on Smash and CalPal to come to the sanctum. After hitting send, Luke breathes out a puff of air he didn’t know he had been holding in. Michael rests a hand on one of Luke’s shoulders and looks at him reassuringly. All stress in his demeanor melts away.

“It’s good that we’re trying to fix things,” Michael says with a soft smile. The word ‘ _we’re_ ’ bounces round in Luke’s head. He’s not the only one working on fixing things. It’s a team effort that they’re both working on, and soon maybe all four of them will be working on fixing things and perhaps continuing their fight against the same evils they had in their teens.

Luke stretches his arms above his head, yawning loudly in the process. Michael yawns shortly after he does, shaking his head the whole time. Luke laughs because of the contagious action. Michael smiles back and walks to island in the center of the sanctum, leaning against it and pulling a face mask and his sunglasses from his pocket. He carefully puts them on and pulls his hood over his fluffy pink hair. Luke moistens his lips and pulls his silver mask from his own pocket and ties it over his eyes. He has to pull his hair out from under it, but when all is done they aren't Luke and Michael anymore. Dr. Fluke and Wave wait for the others to arrive, making small talk until they hear the elevator coming down from the entrance. 

The person entering the sanctum is wearing a black hoodie and their eyes are concealed behind an old looking red mask. They can immediately tell it’s Smash by the mask’s color and his height. His hands are in his pockets as he approaches Fluke and Wave with a bewildered look gracing his features. They know how odd it must be, seeing two people who once feuded so much together in the same room and not fighting. Luke has to push away the urge to smile at the craziness of the situation.

“Fancy seeing you lot here,” Smash says jokingly with a small smile on his face. They both smile in return, feeling comfortable enough around Smash. Luke finds it odd, the dynamic of the group shifting after years without contact. Smash had always been the most reliable member on the team when it came to stability. He’d always been the quietest of them all before the team disbanded, but it seemed he’d come out of his shell in the four years they’d been apart.

“Ah, well anything is possible in Sydney,” Luke says looking from Wave back to Smash. Wave rolled his eyes, the smile on his face growing with fondness. Smash smiles more too, coming to the conclusion that Fluke and Wave took the past couple of days to settle their longtime feud. 

“I’m glad to see that things between the two of you have been settled,” Smash says gently. They all turn when they hear the doors opening to the sanctum, silently anticipating the arrival of Cal-Pal. Luke shoves his hands into the depth of his pocket, trying to hide the nervous energy that courses through his body. He wishes he could take a second to live someone else’s life. It’s something he’s done a few times with strangers, touching them briefly and absorbing all of their memories and living through entire existences for mere seconds. He pushes the thought out of his head after what happened with Michael the night before. He not entitled to any private information and now he knows why.

Soon they hear Cal-Pal at the bottom of the shaft as he walks into the sanctum. Luke looks down and Michael nudges him gently with shoulder, almost as if telling him to stop ignoring the problem. Luke looks up and locks eyes with Cal-Pal. His breath hitches as he tries to restrain himself from finding out who Cal-Pal is because he’s so close. He fixes his eyes on the bit of wall just above his head, sighing because of how difficult it was. Cal-Pal tries to smiles, but it’s awkward and he knows there’s tension between the two of them.

“Welcome back everyone, you probably weren’t expecting this to happen as soon as it did, but Fluke and I have come to our senses and have resolved our problems,” Michael says, directed towards Smash and Cal-Pal but stealing glances at Luke who is nervously turning his ring around his finger. He looks up and sees himself in the reflection of Michael’s sunglasses, imagining the moss green eyes concealed behind them. He looks away, face burning because everything with Michael has become a lot more personal in the last two days. He looks up again at Cal-Pal, but something doesn’t feel right all of a sudden. He has to avert his gaze, instead looking at Smash as he listens to Michael talking about his hopes for the team. When Michael is done, Luke picks up with what he has to say about the whole situation.

“I didn’t really ever think that we’d make up because I didn’t think I had the courage to bring any of you back. I was so afraid of messing everything up by making the same stupid mistakes again,” he says, his voice wavering slightly when he says ‘again’. Michael turns to him, concern obvious even with all of his features covered.

“I hope that in due time we can start doing what we’d pledged to do originally, save lives without our own problems getting in the way,” he finishes after clearing his throat of emotion. He decided swallowing the lump was better than letting Jack’s death get the best of him. He’s eternally guilty for what happened, but saving people was the most important part.

“I, for one started doing this because I wanted to make an impact on the community and to save people when they were in danger. I have taken the last four years to consider my mistake and have tried to learn from it. I hope that you guys can forgive my… idiotic mistake and hopefully rejoin me in the fight.” He says, standing up from the counter and standing tall. 

“I’ll join again. I can’t guarantee that I’ll be as good as I was four years ago, but I’ll try my best,” Smash says taking a few steps towards the others. For Luke it’s a relief to hear, knowing their team won’t completely fall apart. Michael’s eyes crinkle behind his glasses and Luke knows he’s smiling too.

“Six years ago, I joined because I didn’t think I was utilizing the powers I had to their fullest extent, and I knew they could be used for making the world a better place for the people around me,” Michael says taking his hands out of his pockets and fixing his hat, “And I still believe there is work to be done. Count me in,” he says resting a hand on Luke’s shoulder. Luke flashes a great smile at him. 

Everyone turns to Cal-Pal who is looking between Michael and Luke with pursed lips. He sighs and shakes his head with a disbelieving laugh.

“Of course I’m in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to comment any feedback you have (':
> 
> come talk to me on [tumblr](https://bearfacing.tumblr.com)


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